Instant lottery games do not require additional drawings or other events to determine the status of the ticket-holder as a winner or loser. Instead, the play indicia which determine the status of the ticket and can include numbers, symbols, letters, or combinations thereof are selected before the lottery tickets are sold. The list of winning status indicia may be publicly posted or printed on the individual tickets. In either event, an individual purchasing an instant lottery ticket may determine whether the ticket is a winner or loser within a few moments of purchasing the ticket.
The lottery tickets are printed with a set of play indicia which are used by the ticket holder to determine if the ticket has a winning combination which 4,241,942, 4,012,268, and 3,900,219 all disclose lottery tickets in which the play indicia are concealed before sale of the ticket. One method for concealing the play indicia includes an opaque removable layer affixed to the lottery ticket over the play indicia to conceal the play indicia. Various types of removable opaque layers are known in the art. One type of removable opaque layer consists of a coating which can be removed by rubbing or abrasion. U.S Pat. No. 4,725,079 discloses a removable latex cover which conceals the play indicia. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,299,637 and 4,174,857 disclose a concealing layer consisting of cellulose acetate and latex. U.S. Pat. No. 4,726,608 discloses a concealing layer of a latex resin containing an ink and metal particles. U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,942 uses a removable coating of an elastomeric material to conceal the play indicia. A second type of removable opaque layers involves a separate sheet which is removed after tearing the sheet along perforated lines. U.S. Pat. No. 4,012,268 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,900,219 both disclose the use of this type of removable opaque layer. In all cases in which the play indicia are covered before sale of the ticket, after purchasing the ticket, the ticket holder removes the opaque layer to reveal the play indicia. The play indicia are then compared to the predetermined set of winning indicia to determine if the ticket holder is a winner. If the ticket has a winning set of indicia, the ticket holder then redeems the ticket in order to obtain the associated prize.
The manner in which prizes are distributed varies with the type of lottery game. Lotteries having high value prizes often require prize distribution by the lottery organizer or other designated clearing house. Other lotteries having low value prizes, such as many instant lottery games, frequently provide immediate prize distribution through the agent that sells the ticket.
Various means have been developed to prevent or detect falsification of lottery tickets for both high value and low value lotteries Unscrupulous individuals may try to alter a losing ticket by combining winning play indicia from a group of losing tickets. The unscrupulous individual may cut out winning play indicia and paste them together on a single ticket. Alternatively, the unscrupulous individual may attempt to forge the winning play indicia directly by printing or otherwise providing his own set of winning play indicia.
Validation codes have been developed to prevent this type of fraudulent practice. A validation code is a separate set of indicia that indicates whether the particular ticket was originally printed with winning or losing play indicia. Various types of validation codes are known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,591,190 discloses a lottery ticket with a validation code which provides an entirely self-contained validation system. This validation system uses the play indicia themselves as the validation number. The play indicia are printed twice on the ticket. One set of the play indicia are clearly visible to the ticket holder and the second set is covered with a layer of scratch-off coating. When the ticket holder learns that the visible play indicia correspond to the winning indicia, the ticket holder presents the ticket to a lottery official. The lottery official in turn removes the scratch-off coating from the second set of play indicia. The second set should have indicia identical with the visible first set. If the two sets of indicia are the same and match the winning indicia, the ticket is valid and entitles the ticket holder to a prize. If, however, the second set of indicia is not the same as the first visible set, this indicates that someone has tampered with the visible set of play indicia in an attempt to forge a winning ticket.
Another type of validation system uses validation codes which are related to but not identical with the play indicia. In one such system, the validation code is created as the result of an algorithm which uses the play indicia as part of the creation process for the validation code. The resulting validation codes do not bear any apparent relationship to the play indicia. U.S. Pat. No. 4,725,079 discloses a lottery ticket in which the book number indicating the ticket lot is algorithmically converted into the validation number. U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,376 discloses a lottery ticket in which a validation code is simply a serial number which records information about the ticket, such as ticket lot number or distribution area, in numerical form. An algorithm is used to transform the serial number into the lottery number or play indicia. There is no apparent relationship between the serial number and the algorithmically generated lottery number so that one cannot tell if a ticket has winning play indicia by reference only to the serial number. Other validation systems use validation codes which, although related to the winning indicia, do not employ as sophisticated an algorithm for generating the validation code.
In all lottery tickets which use validation codes, the validation code provides separate verification of the status of the ticket. The actual method for verifying the status of the ticket varies with the type of validation system used. U.S. Pat. No. 4,398,708 discloses a verification method in which a computer is used to verify the play indicia and validation code of a given ticket. The ticket agent inputs the apparently winning lottery number into the computer along with the serial number which appears on the ticket. By reverse operation of the original algorithm which generated the lottery number from the serial number, the computer calculates the serial number which should be associated with the winning lottery number. The lottery ticket is verified as a winning ticket if the calculated serial number is identical with the serial number on the ticket. Alternatively, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,398,708, after reverse-generating the serial number, the computer may simply generate an output indicating "yes" if the inputed lottery number and serial number correspond with a winning number and ticket. A computer based validation system is most appropriate with high value lottery games. For lower value prizes, the ticket agent may verify the ticket by comparing the validation code to a list of winning validation codes.
Regardless of the specific type of validation system used, a ticket must therefore have both winning play indicia and a proper validation code to qualify as a winning ticket. Falsification of the validation code, however, is possible if the ticket holder has access to the list of qualifying validation codes. Removable opaque layers covering the validation codes have been developed to prevent this type of fraudulent practice. The removable opaque layer helps to prevent both the examination of the validation code prior to ticket redemption and alterations of the validation code. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,591,190, 4,174,857, and 4,726,608 disclose lottery tickets in which the validation code is concealed with a removable opaque layer. U.S. Pat. No. 4,591,190 discloses a removable opaque layer consisting of an opaque ultraviolet-cured ink. U.S. Pat. No. 4,726,608 discloses a removable opaque concealing layer consisting of a latex resin containing an ink and metal particles. U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,857 discloses a concealing layer consisting of cellulose acetate and latex. The removable opaque layer concealing the validation codes helps to prevent the inspection of the validation code prior to ticket redemption. If an individual has access to the list of validation codes corresponding to winning play indicia, or has access to the algorithm used to create the validation code from other known parameters, then the individual could pick out the winning tickets by merely examining the validation code. Removable opaque layers concealing the validation codes help to prevent this type of pre-selection of winning tickets.
The opaque layer is frequently overprinted with a legend such as "void if removed." U.S. Pat. No. 4,591,190 discloses a "void if removed" legend printed over the removable opaque layer concealing the validation code. The legend also includes line patterns which extend beyond the removable layer to the surface of the substrate. The "void if removed" legend indicates to the ticket holder that the covering should not be removed by the ticket holder. The legend also assists the ticket agent in determining whether the validation code has been altered. An unscrupulous person may attempt to remove the opaque covering and alter the validation code. Before presenting the forged ticket to the ticket agent for prize redemption, the opaque layer covering the validation code must be replaced. Distortion of the "void if removed" legend or other symbols printed on this opaque covering occurs during removal and replacement of the layer and indicates to the ticket agent that someone has tampered with the validation number. In addition, removal and replacement of the opaque layer frequently changes the layer such that it becomes very stiff and is not easily removed a second time. This change in the removal characteristics of the opaque layer also assists ticket agents in determining whether someone has tampered with the validation code.
Opaque layers covering the validation code do not, however, prevent all types of ticket falsification. The opaque covering helps to prevent fraudulent practices by lottery customers. The opaque covering does not adequately prevent fraudulent practices by lottery ticket agents. Prior to the sale of the ticket, the agent may remove the opaque layer covering the validation code to determine if a given ticket has a winning status. If the ticket does have a winning status, the agent retains the ticket himself and does not sell it to the public. If, on the other hand, the ticket is a loser, the agent simply replaces the opaque layer before sale to a customer. The opaque layer, once removed, can be stiffened by glue and then replaced by gluing it on the ticket. An opaque layer treated in this fashion becomes very stiff and is almost impossible to remove. If the lottery agent himself is responsible for removing and replacing the opaque covering, this type of fraudulent practice would not be detected. The agent would only replace the validation codes on losing tickets. Losing tickets in turn are not presented to lottery officials for verification of the validation code. Consequently, removal and replacement of the opaque covering on losing validation codes by unscrupulous ticket agents is largely undetected.